Gambit
by Lilosan
Summary: Friendship can be simulated, love can be acted. How can you figure out what is real and what is played? Drao is caught up in a web of intrigues. Will he be able to disentangle himself and what price will he have to pay?
1. Insomnia

Gambit by Lilosan

1.Chapter

Two dark figures were standing in the corridor of the seventh floor. Both had their heads inclined towards a piece of parchment.

"Nobody is coming. Everybody went either straight back to their dorms or the library."

"Let's wait a bit more. I want to be sure."

"Alright, but not to long. I'm quite tired."

Breakfast. Draco felt his eyes falling shut. He grabbed a cup of coffee and poured it down into his throat without a pause. That was a mistake. He coughed and nearly sprayed the content of the now empty mug through his nose.

He cleared his throat a few times, frowned at his cup and smashed it down a bit too hard. The cup broke and the shards cut his fingers. Cursing he stood up a bit to hastily and slammed his chair down on the marble floor of the Grand Hall.

At that point most of the pupils had stopped consuming their meal and stared at him openly. Some of the stares were curious some he knew were mocking. Draco held his head high and his back as straight as possible, whilst he walked out of the Hall with about 500 eyes searing into his back. A great number of people started to murmur once he was out of the Hall.

Only when Draco was sure that nobody could see him, he let his shoulders sag and started massaging his temples, tracing invisible circles on his skin.

Since last Friday sleep eluded him completely. He had been wandering in his dorm or reading some overly boring book in the common room, trying to lull his brain into sleep. But nothing had worked. And it had all started on that bloody Friday.

As usual after supper on Friday he had wandered aimlessly around the castle, trying to find something interesting to do or someone to have a conversation with. His housemates were not a reference in that particular point. Usually he would find one of his teachers and discuss the last topic they had discussed in class. And the fact that he was Head Boy gave him access to nearly all the places in the castle.

He was just about to round a corner on the seventh floor, when he heard somebody talking.

"You know we shouldn't be doing this. Think about how Hermione would react." The voice was distinctly familiar and Draco tried to match a face to it.

"Actually Hermione is the last person I'm thinking about right now. I was hoping it would be the same with you."

"Well, officially she is still my girlfriend…"

"And what does that make me, your little concubine? If you prefer to be with that bushy-haired Mudblood, then you can forget about getting into my pants."

"Don't call her that. She is far better than you. You will never live up to anything she is. And besides I thought she was your friend."

Draco finally understood to whom the voice belonged. Harry Potter. And he was obviously talking to a girl. And it was not Granger. This made it very interesting indeed. The only information that Draco was still missing, was the name of the girl with which Harry was cheating on Granger. Then he could finally destroy Potters reputation for good.

He inched closer to the corner, still flat against the wall, so as to be sure, that nobody could see him. But still he couldn't identify the girl. He kept moving and was now positively sure, that his silvery hair could be seen around the corner.

"If that is so then you can get fucked. I'm done with this."

"No, wait."

Draco heard a sharp intake of breath and then the soundof rustling clothes. Someone was moving. This would be his only chance to get the girl's identity. He leaned forward just in time to see how the hooded figure was struggling, trying to get away from Harry. She freed one hand and slapped him across the face. Harry let go and stepped back a stunned expression on his face.

"Oh shit! I'm sorry, Harry, I didn't mean to …"

But she didn't get any further. Harry had taken a step forward and punched her hard. _This is going to be even better than I thought it would be!_ Her hood fell back and a cascade of red hair crashed on the trembling figure. There was only one female person with this hair color studying at Hogwarts. It was Weasel-face's little sister, Ginny Weasley.

She was kneeling on the floor right in front of Potter, her shoulders trembling.

"You are nothing to me. You aren't even worth looking at. Nobody will ever give you a second thought or glance. You are just some whorish lowlife dragging your family's name into the mud with every breath you take."

Ginny's shoulders stopped trembling. She lifted her head and looked at Potter with such and expression of rage, that even Draco felt taken aback. All of a sudden she burst out:

"Go away! I hate your guts. I swear if you ever come close to me again, I will kill you, you dirty son of a bitch!"

"Never insult my mother!" Potter roared in a maddeningly loud voice."She wasn't only one of the best witches of her time, she had morals. This is more than I can say for you. You want me to stay away? It's more the other way around. It's you who came to me, you who begged and corrupted me. But thankfully, this little conversation opened my eyes."

He turned away briskly and left. Draco dared not breathe. He watched on, as Ginny let her head fall back down again, covering her face in the process. But it wasn't hard to figure what was going to happen next. A heart-tearing sob echoed in the hallway, making the silent observer wince in pity for the girl. There were a lot of things said about Darco and the Malfoys in general, but no one could claim that they were emotionless.

It was time for Draco to step up. His head was buzzing, trying to cope with all the information those few minutes had produced. His mind was busy retrieving all the fact about this devastated girl, which he could remember. Apparently she was the black sheep in the Weasley-clan. She didn't sympathize with Muggles and Mudbloods, like the rest of her family did. Plus she was the only good looking Weasley ever recorded in time.

Still, Draco remained suspicious. This could be some cunning plan Potter had devised. Highly unlikely though. Never underestimate your enemies, his father used to say.

Ginny was still crying, her body rattled by sobs. Her trembling hands were neatly placed at either side of her knees, supporting her weight as best as they could.

Draco finally moved. He was now standing right in front of her. Yet, she didn't notice him. This gave him some time to observe her. Different thoughts were running through the boy's mind, some trying to find a snide remark with which he could make his presence know, others busy with the low décolleté, revealing a bit more then what the owner would probably have liked.

He knelt down and passed her his handkerchief.

"Here, take this."

"I told you to…"

The expression quickly turned from rage to disbelieve, as she saw who he was.

"Oh, ...Thanks"

She reached for the handkerchief with one trembling hand and blew her nose. When Draco thought she had calmed down sufficiently, he stood up and held out his hand for her. She took it and stood up. He didn't let go of but gave a tug, wanting to lead her towards the nearest window. Ginny didn't budge and he suddenly remembered that she didn't trust him. He turned around and shot her an annoyed look. Then he tugged again, this time harder, so that she could do nothing else but stumble after him.

Draco drew her so close to the window that she could feel the cold winter air seeping through from the outside. He let go of her hand only to grab her chin in a practical -almost medical- way, so that he could see her right cheek. Ginny noticed that Draco had placed her so that the cheek he was now examining so cautiously was also the closest to the window. She was watching him with a weary expression, as if she feared that he would hit her just as well. The black bruise forming under her eye was now clearly visible.

"Do you have your wand with you?" Draco asked.

"No." Her voice was still unsteady.

"Well, me neither. So we will have to do it the old-fashioned way."

The hand holding her chin slid to her left cheek and pressed its opposite to the cold glass. Ginny winced but didn't resist, on the contrary. She leaned her cheek fully against the window, sighed and closed her eyes.

"Thanks for helping me, Malfoy."

Draco didn't answer straight away. His thoughts were still preoccupied with the soft skin of her face warming his cold hand.

"Malfoy?"

Draco snapped back into reality and remembered who she was and what had happened.

He took two steps back, shaking his hand as if he had burned it. He opened his mouth as if to say something, thought better of it and closed it again. He looked up only to meet her eyes, which seemed to confuse him even more. He briskly turned around and stormed away.

Now he wasn't able to sleep anymore. Thoughts of what had happened came haunting him every second he was awake. And as if that wasn't bad enough, he saw her face which had been so close to his every time he closed his eyes. Nothing was going as he had wanted it to go. He hadn't even told anybody about what had happened in that hallway. This was completely out of character for him. Usually, he would have spread the rumor as fast as possible, so that Harry Potter's reputation could be trounced big time. Well, life is a peach and unconveniently Draco Malfoy was allergic to peaches.


	2. Confrontations

Gambit by Lilosan

A.N.: Big thanks to **Allychik6** (Draco is confused about his own actions towards Ginny, when he usually never lets a chance slip to bug one Weasley or the other. Make it insomnia of an irritated adolescent. ;-) ) and **jjp91** (Did I update soon enough?).

Chapter 2: "Confrontations"

Draco was still contemplating last Friday and his own actions on that fateful night, when his magic watch illuminated red and said:

"Dear mister Malfoy. I don't want to bother you, but you are going to be late for your class."

"Shit." He lifted his watch to eye level "Tell me, what subject and how much time I have left?"

"It's Advanced Defense Against The Dark Arts and you have got exactly two minutes and forty eight seconds. I would recommend you take the wishing stairs. They are 5 meters to the left in an angle of exactly 90 degrees from your current facial position. Have a good day, sir."

Draco sharply turned left and saw the wishing stairs. Very few students knew about these particular stairs. They had a tendency to appear and disappear whenever they wanted, making it absolutely impossible to find them, without some sort of tracking device or another. He was running towards the stairs and leaped onto the first step. He was just about to give his directions to the stairs, when someone hopped on next to him and commanded:

"Second Floor!"

"What the fuck? I'm already late and I was here first."

He turned around and felt his head pounding with a new wave of pain. It was quite unsettling, how every time he got near her, his headaches gotworse._Why of all people, must it be her? _But none of this could be seen on his face. His father had always said that every conversation was like a duel. Show your weakness and you get killed. The stairs had started moving.

"You are going to make me late and Professor Narva doesn't like tardy students. That means that I will get detention."

"You are not the only one trying to avoid being late" snapped Ginny irritably.

Draco looked her straight in the eyes, smirked and with one quick movement snatched her hair, which was conveniantly covering one side of her face. He pushed the strands of hair behind her ear, revealing a purplish mark.

"You should have kept it cold a little longer. Now it will take more time to heal." He inspected the bruise, poking it a bit.

"Ouch! Don't do that. I wanted to thank you anyway, for the help you gave me. And I'm extremely grateful as well, that you didn't mention the little scene to anybody."

She inspected his face, that was only a hand span away. Accentuated cheekbones, a straight noseanda thin mouthwere seperating the sharp planes of clear skin. His eyes, which were currently inspecting her bruised cheek, were clear blue. Strands of hair, a bit too long to her liking were framing his head like a silver halo. But when he heard her voice he took a step back, disdain flitting across his face for a brief moment.

"If you think I didn't tell, just so Potter could still uphold his shining image of a noble citizen, then you are gravely mistaking."

"No. I don't care what happens to that bastard. All I care about is my reputation. I don't want the school to talk about me as if I was some sex-obsessed bitch."

She drew her hair down, so that it covered her face again. The stairs stopped moving. Ginny nimbly jumped of and walked down the hallway. Draco watched her open a door, apologize and walk in. _She should have been sorted into Slytherin. _

"Mister Malfoy, you are five minutes behind your schedule."

His watch snapped him back out of his reverie. He barked at the stairs and ran down the hallway of the third floor, to get to his classroom. He stood in front of the door, tried to calm his breathing and walked in. Professor Narva was in the process of explaining the different kinds of curses they would practice today. She shot him one scrutinizing look and continued with the lecture.

The students, who were mostly Gryffindor, were watching his every move. The looks he received ranged from displeased to hateful. Ignoring this, Draco took up his seat at the back of the class.

Today's lecture was aboutwhat counter curses were most efficient against differentcurses:

"…the bleeding curses are easy to perform but are very hard to target. Blocking them with the protection charm we have learned last lesson will deflect the worst ones. As you know smaller curses, like the clover-curse, can easily pierce that barrier. Now please stand up, so I can clear the room for practice. No duels, just curse and the counter-curse. Potter and Weasley, Granger and Malfoy, Finnegan and Muller. Mister Creevey, you will be practicing with me. Go on now!"

"Professor, why do you always team Malfoy up with me?"

"Miss Granger, any further references to my ability as teacher or to that stupid house feud of yours will cost you twenty points from your house."

"It's not that. I just don't like him."

"Well, I don't care. You two are the best students in my class and if youpractice witheach other, then you have a challenge to face. Now get going, we don't have much time."

Draco saw Granger drop her head slightly. She looked over to where he was standing, squared her shoulders and purposefully walked over to him. Once near him, she hissed, so that only he could hear:

"You are only good at this, because your father wanted to prepare you for your glorious career as a maniac killer." Draco's eyes thinned like a snake's, letting only a gleam of hatred filter through his blonde lashes.

"Keep my father out of this you rotten Mudblood, or face the consequences."

Both opponents saluted sharply and moved five paces into opposite directions. Draco had barely turned around when Hermione launched her first curse. Draco blocked it easily with a casual flick of his wand. He then fired three curses in short interval.

His father had trained him personaly, directly passing on the knowledge of one of the fiercest duelists of the wizarding world. For example the ability to fire curses and counter curses without the need to pronounce them. He just had to concentrate on his wand and think of the curse he wanted to use.

Granger had been his partner in Advanced DADA for a long time, so she knew about it and could counter, albeit with some difficulty. But this time she didn't expect so many curses nor in such a quick succession. She barely had time to pronounce the counter curse, when Draco's first curse hit her. Obviously she hadn't concentrated, because the near-invisible wall surrounding her wavered. And as the second curse hit, it vanished completely, driving her three feet back. The third curse wasaimed straight at her heart. Daco saw her eyes widen, realization hitting her, that this could be her last breath she ever expelled. He quickly drew his hand upwards, changing the direction of the curse. The curse flew past her, taking out a whole bunch of her curly hair in the process. Draco started forward, wanting to make sure, that the girl standing in front of him was whole.

"Holy shit! Are you alr… Hey!" The first clover shaped streak of light passed annoyingly close to his eye, cutting his ear and shearing some of his own hair.

"Epessa!" Draco screamed just in time. A thick shield of purple smoke swallowed the remaining three streaks of light.

"Are you mad? Did you want to kill me?" Draco strode towards Hermione anger enveloping him like a sacred fire.

He grabbed her shoulders and started shaking her violently letting her go suddenly. With every sense of balance shaken from her, she landed on the floor, letting out a shriek of surprise. Suddenly Potter was standing in front of him, shielding his girlfriend. He pushed Draco back, his right hand forming a fist, ready to strike. But before he could do anything, Draco saw his opponent being swallowed by a gigantic bubble and go slack. He was about to make a snide comment, when he noticed that he himself was encompassed in the same sort of strength-draining bubble. Professor Narva was kneeling next to Hermione, who was massaging a quickly swelling wrist. She had probably strained it when shelanded. The professor straightened and with a flick of her wand made the bubbles disappear. Draco and Harry fell down simultaneously. They were both breathing heavily. Black spots were dancing in front of Draco's eyes and through them he saw the floor tilting crazily. He focused on something stable and started to feel better already.

"Potter, Granger, Malfoy explain yourselves!" snapped the Professor.

Draco filled his constricted lungs with air as best as he could, before launching into his explanatory protocol:

"Just like youtold us to do,we practiced the curse and counter curse, which were subject of this lesson. I threw a few curses at my partner, which she should have been able to block. But she didn't. She especially had trouble with the last one, so I tried to charge its trajectory. It still caught her hair. This probably pissed her of. I was just about to investigate after her wellbeing, when she started hitting me with the clover curse. I was taken by surprise, so it took me some time to activate the right defense curse. I used the Epessa-shield. As you have taught us, it is the most efficient protection against shredding curses, the clover curse being one of them. I lost a good deal of my own hair and got a nasty gash on my ear. Here you must agree that without my fathers tutelage I would never had been able to distract the curse, nor build up the right defenses as quickly as I did. This confrontation could have easily ended with the death of one or even both of us. Knowing the full extent of injuries we could have suffered from, I got angry and pushed her a little harder then I should have. That's when this prick attacked me, causing you to interfere."

"Is this true Miss Granger? You attacked Mister Malfoy with the clover curse after I had forbidden it?" Hermione who was still kneeling on the floor looked extremely uncomfortable. To make matters even worse, her eyes filled with tears and a sob broke from her throat.

"I ... I'm sorry. I didn't want to, but I … " Her voice was shaking so badly, that she couldn't even formulate one sentence.

"Shut up!" Harry stood up and jerked Hermione to her feet. She was so shocked about Harry's behavior, that she went rigid, unable to move. Her eyes were round,making agood impression of a deer caught in the headlights. But she wasn't the only one staring at Harry. Nobody had ever seen Harry act so forcefully and they were clearly frightened. Only one person was wearing a different expression. Draco's eyes half closed, giving him the allure of some sort ofpredatory animal, as he observed the incomprehension grow amongst his classmates. All of a sudden Harry let go of his girlfriend, finally noticing the stares he was receiving. It took him a few seconds to completely perceive the situation. Then he lifted his head and looked at every single student as if challenging them. Draco also felt the fiery stare scorch him but didn't betray any other feelings then hate. Harry took a few deep breaths and started talking:

"We can't start losing control now. Probably most of youknow what happened this summer. Rumors are circulating, but I will tell you the truth. I killed twenty eight people in one night. I was kidnapped and taken to a place completely unknown to me. They were twenty nine. One got away. It was Voldemort. He sacrificed all his deatheaters and then fled gravely wounded after our confrontation. Some might call me a murderer or a psychopath but I know that all the men that I killed were bad. Lusting for power, ready to give up everything just to have more. So if you judge me, don't forget to judge the people that forced me into these actions." A heavy silence ensued. Draco felt his whole body shaking, all the hate welling up in him and a red haze blurring his vision. When he opened his mouth to speak, his voice was surprisingly even and as sharp as a razor blade.

"_**Never**_ talk about such things, assuming you comprehend the feelings of those involved. And if are trying to lift our spirits for this lesson, try not to get too political about it. Don't forget, some might not share your ideals and would prefer to see you die slowly, painfully. I wonder what people will say then. But I know exactly what I will say and trust me, I won't have any problem at all revealingmy partin makingyou suffer before ending your useless life!"

Draco turned towards the professor. She was looking at him, as if he had sprouted another head. Never had she heard such a young person talk with so muchhatred. His classmates were equally shocked. Draco didn't dare look at Harry after what he himself had said, fearing he would tearthe fucking Halfbloodapart, now that he had unleashed all of his hatred.

"With your permission I will leave this class now. I wish you a good day." He grabbed his book bag and stormed out of the classroom, head held high. Nobody tried to stop him.


	3. Writing on the wall

Gambit by Lilosan

Chapter 3: Writings on the wall

* * *

I am on my knees, apologizing for the late update, if anybody still cares that is. Its been a few very hard weeks for me. Planning and executing a party for about 350 people, falling in love and getting my heart broken, constantly on the move across all of Europe without my laptop. Again Im deeply sorry. Please enjoy and tell me what you think about it. But first thank you to:

**Allychick6** (Yes Harry is an all around arsehole.For some reason I never liked him. Just dont judge him so quickly. Who knows what the story will bring forth.), **jjp91** and **TheItalianBanjoist** (Hope this will give you back your sanity ... um ... insanity)

* * *

After the incident in class, Draco decided it would be best, if he avoided people altogether for a while. The Great Hall, the common room and the library were out of question. He wanted to be completely alone. And the only places one could be remotely undisturbed, were the four towers. The North Tower was the highest one and would now be occupied by students learning how to chart the sky with some teacher or the other. The South Tower was off limits even for the Head Boy (the reasons were a bit vague, something about another weapon against the "Enemy"). And the West Tower was the official home of the weirdest teacher at Hogwarts, Professor Trelawney.

All of this didn't bother Draco. He was only interested in the East Tower. He made his way eastwards through the castle until he reached the end of a very long corridor. Taking out his wand, Draco scribbled something on the wall, leaving a thin trail of fire in its wake. The fiery traces were fading quickly. When they disappeared completely, he took two steps back.

"Draco Malfoy, House of Salazar Slytherin" There was a flash of green light, once faded, revealing a small stairwell. Draco climbed up, until he reached a trapdoor right above his head. He opened it and a sharp, cold wind welcomed him to the rooftop of the East Tower.

It was February and still cold. The view was splendid. The winter sun was shining, illuminating the snow. Melt water was flowing in thin rivulets into the lake. Draco stood still for a few minutes absorbing everything. He had always liked winter.

He was about to sit down on his favorite spot, when he noticed that he was not alone. Someone was sitting on the battlements, appreciating the same view he had appreciated seconds ago. That someone hadn't noticed him and was still sitting there cross-legged, perilously close to the chasm. Draco recognized Ginny easily. He took a few steps closer, standing now directly behind her, ready to grab her, if she fell over.

"I thought I was the only one who knew how to get up here", Draco said. Ginny didn't seem surprised at all. She turned around so that she was facing him.

"I'm Fred and George Weasley's little sister. I know every pathway in this school. They used to hide here, when Filtch was chasing them. I use this place to calm down."

"I don't think this is the appropriate time for you to 'calm down'. You should be in class. Don't forget, I can give you detention, especially if you are skipping." He was looking down at her. His expression was still grave, not once betraying the emotions that were boiling up in him.

Draco had no idea what was happening to him. This may sound like the sort of phrase a cheap novelist would use, when describing one of his characters falling in love, but it was not love. Draco was a hundred percent sure. He was no child anymore. He had enough experience to know the difference between love and the feeling he was getting when he was around Ginny. This was indeed different. He was still not sure, if it was good different or bad different, but being around her somehow relieved him.

A man can't see for himself if he is walking the right path. Only the result in itself or some higher judgment will prove him wrong or right. Another one of his father's sayings. I'll just have to wait for thunder to strike me then, Draco thought, far too absorbed in the person facing him, to give a damn about his father for once.

"I'm not skipping. Dennis Creevey sliced of Miranda Bleak's arm and now we have two free lessons." Draco wasn't really paying attention to what she was saying. He was still observing her while she was talking, his expression unreadable.

"Malfoy? Are you listening? I asked you a question." Ginny said, irritation making her voice sharp. This brought Draco back to reality.

"Huh… Sorry?" He obviously hadn't been listening to what she was saying and had lost track of the conversation.

"I asked you, what you were doing here. Taking a day off or just enjoying the view." She didn't like repeating herself. _Probably because she has been ignored so thoroughly by her brothers_.

"I just walked out of the classroom. I didn't like the atmosphere."

"What subject fucked you off so badly?" she said, sounding honestly curious.

"Advanced DADA with Professor Narva." Draco didn't find it necessary to lie to her.

"Why? I thought you liked that subject. You are supposed to be her top student. Even better then Hermione." Ginny looked up at him, with a curious expression "Unless… it was not the subject, but one of your fellow classmates that hacked you off so badly. If I may venture a guess, then I would say it had something to do with Harry."

"An accurate guess, but then when does the world not revolve around Potter. He thought badmouthing my father and his colleagues, may they rest in peace, would encourage everybody to try harder at school. He must have forgotten that I was listening. This pissed me off quite badly. You might be aware of the fact, that it was Potter, who killed my father." Draco's gaze had shifted. His eyes were now fixed on some distant point, but Ginny could still see the rage burning, darkening his light eyes.

"I'm sorry." She didn't know why she was apologizing, but it just seemed important to her. "It's just like Harry to do something as stupid as that. He rarely thinks his actions through. That's one reason, why he ends up in bad situations most of the time. Same goes for what he says. He just can't keep his mouth shut."

Eager to change the subject, Draco asked Ginny a question she knew he had to ask her sooner or later: "What actually happened between you and Harry?"

"Can I trust you not to tell anyone?" She was obviously still uncomfortable talking about what had happened.

"Might I remind you that I kept my mouth shut after I witnessed first hand what had happened on Friday, when I could have written it in flashy pink letters on the wall of the Great Hall? Therefore I am definitely entitled to know.", a smirk was tugging at the corner of his mouth

"Why flashy pink?" An amused expression had replaced the serious one she had been supporting up till now.

"Not that this is the point, but I have always hated pink with a passion. So it is logical, that should something mean be written, it should be in pink."

Ginny laughed out. "Undeniable logic. All right. I'll tell you, but you'll have to answer me one question in return."

"Fine." He held out his hand, ready to seal their bargain. She laughed out again at the sight of his mockingly serious expression, but none the less shook the proffered hand.

"Harry and Hermione's relationship started about a year ago. Well,it didn't have an actual start; it more or less flowed from their friendship. She had always loved him. But he thought it was more an obligation then anything else. He still doesn't love her, but respects her greatly, as I found out on Friday. He came up to me and told me, how bad he was feeling in their relationship and that he actually loved me. He also pointed out, that he couldn't leave her, because he didn't want to upset her… To make a long story short, I believed him and gave him what he wanted." Her voice had grown fainter with every word she had said. In the end it was barely even a whisper.

"So, he fucked you when he needed it and then left you when you became too bothersome. He probably didn't even shag his girlfriend up till now. She is far too good to be playing those kind of kinky games with." She flinched at his words, the directness making her feel, how badly she had been used.

"Well… yes. And then, last Friday I confronted him about the situation. I wanted him to leave Hermione." Ginny's shoulders slumped, comprehending how stupid she had been to make such a claim. Suddenly she heard Draco chuckle and looked up, surprised.

"Sorry, but this is so clichéd, that it's hardly gullible." He looked amused, his infamous smirk gracing his face.

"So what! Maybe I'm just a naïve little child, falling for that horny bastard. But I guess one never gets over childhood crushes." She snapped, angry at him for making her feel even worse then before. She averted her head and crossed her arms over her chest.

"You're wrong you know." The tone of his voice made her look up. He had taken two steps and was now standing right in front of her. "Technically you're not a child anymore."

The battlement, on which Ginny was sitting, was about one meter high. And now that Draco was standing so close to her, he registered the fact that they were about eyelevel. Still he was a bit taller then her, which didn't bother him overmuch, quite on the contrary: he liked being in above everybody else, in control. And superior height was a crucial aspect of that aim. She lifted her face to him, her eyes searching his for a decent explanation, about what was going to happen now.

Draco's left hand reached up and tangled in her hair. Drawing his hand slowly down, her head was forced back. Her face was now completely open to him, her expression serene, as if she was ready to be sacrificed to some idol god. His right hand slid along her jaw line, holding her there, giving him total control over her head.

Draco felt an uncontrollable desire in his gut as he touched her. Some kind of burning acid had replaced the blood in his veins. Ginny slowly closed her eyes and her lips parted automatically to him. He softly put him lips to hers. Ginny relaxed completely into his embrace, a deep and satisfied sigh escaping her.

Feeling Ginny's fragile form tremble under his touch made Draco feel strong. The corners of his lips curved up, satisfaction washing over him like a tidal wave. He bit into her lip, shocking her, making her gasp. He forced her even closer to him, deepening the kiss. The hand that was still tangled in her hair gripped forcefully ripping out a few strands in the process.

Suddenly Draco broke the kiss and stepped back. Asmirk again gracing his face, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Later." Was the only thing he said, as he grabbed his book bag and left the tower without as much as a glance back.

His mind was reeling and he felt as if he owned millions of galleons. Which he actually did.

* * *

I solemly swear that ... Im up to no good ... and that I will write the chapters way faster from now on. As Im now back in Moscow (Hooray!) I have the means and the time to continue writing and actually posting my work. 


	4. Lobe den Tag nicht vor dem Abend

Seriously I am taking work up again on this story. Thank you all for the replies and the patience.

Chapter 4: Lobe den Tag nicht vor dem Abend.

Draco hadn't slept so well in a long time. It was breakfast again and he was feeling better then ever. He could hardly believe, that it was only twenty four hours ago, that he had gone through the same motions, only this time the apparent death wishes were missing. The difference was his mood: grim and suicidal the day before, cheerful and happy today.

From time to time Draco stole secret glances to the Gryffindor table. He couldn't wait to see her again. His heart beating inside his chest was filled with warm honey, spreading through his veins, triggering fiery responses inside his guts. It didn't necessarily qualify as a good feeling. On one hand he longed to see her again, on the other, he still wanted her as far away from him as possible. She was still a Gryffindor. This was definitively confusing him … _but what the hell_, Draco thought, _go figure_.

He was day dreaming like this for quite some time, when suddenly he felt a searing pain in his wrists.

"Ah!" he exclaimed loud enough for the people in his near vicinity to turn around, searching for the source of trouble. He rolled up his sleeves and held his arms out in front of him so that the palms were facing the magically changing ceiling above him. He always had had very visible veins and often, when bored, looked at them, tracing the thin, blue lines from his elbows up to his wrists. But now there was definitively something wrong. The blood vessels had doubled their breadth and were bulging out of his skin just a little bit. The rhythm had slowed down considerably. Draco would usually ignore all of these signs, if not for the agony that followed every one of the belated beats.

He took out his wand and passed it lightly over his forearm. The yellow light which had been pulsing at the tip of his wand, tracing his inflated blood vessels, he now turned on an empty piece of parchment.

"Analysa"

The yellow light formed a big spot on the white parchment and intensified for a second, blinding the owner of the wand temporarily. Draco blinked a few times trying to remove the imprints that had formed inside his eyelids. Then he took up the parchment to find two words scribbled down in a very neat handwriting:

"Not good"

…that was all.

Usually there would be the name of some disease or sickness, sometimes even that of a curse with the whole explanation, the symptoms and the possible cures written down. It was a real bad sign, if his analyzing spell couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. He probably will have to tell that absolutely incompetent nurse down in the hospital wing about this.

This didn't make him feel any better. On the contrary: it made him feel even worse. He would have liked to tell his mother about this abnormality. And he would have, if the situation had occurred last year. But now, with his father gone, his mother concentrated all of her attention on him. Her only living relative…

Thinking of his mother's poor condition, once one of the strongest and most beautiful witches of their society, made Draco want to throw up. His thoughts were automatically redirected to Potter. Never had he felt so much anger and hatred for that asshole then now. It was incredible how much pain and destruction one single person was able to spawn in his up till now perfect life.

Again the pain in his wrists set in, startling him out of his reverie. He looked around and noticed that everybody was getting up, ready to go to their respective classes. His eyes flickered briefly over to the Gryffindor table. She still hadn't come. Was she ill? Was she ok? Or was it plain embarrassment that was holding her away from breakfast?

"Hey Draco! Are you coming or what? We have double potions now."

Blaise Zabini was standing behind Draco's chair, looking over his shoulder to get a look at whatever was keeping his classmate rooted to his chair. Draco quickly hid the parchment with his diagnosis under the schoolbooks he had taken out earlier.

Blaise was definitively the rare person, with whom Draco could exchange a few words, without experiencing the sudden urge to hit him with something very hard. So that qualified him to be Draco's best friend. He was intelligent and understood the fine art of manipulating everybody in his vicinity. Plus he had lost his father on the same night Draco had lost his. This subconsciously brought them even closer. The same heavy burden was placed on his shoulders, literally overnight, of carrying a famous and powerful family name.

Blaise had a little brother, still too young to be at Hogwarts and Draco did envy him for that, being an only child. But then, not only was Blaise's father killed on that faithful night, but his mother had committed suicide somewhere in the following week.

The actual date was still a bit unclear. Their mother used to lock herself into her room for weeks and so nobody was disturbed when she didn't show up for a week after her husband's death. The servants had even made bets on how long she would stay locked in that time.

Eventually the smell became so bad, that Blaise broke into his mother's room, curious about what could reek so badly. He found her lying on her bed, as beautiful as ever. The only sign of death was the already dried blood stains on her pale blue sheets. Blaise had stepped closer and lifted the sheets from the supposedly sleeping form. He rolled the sheets down to her waist. Everything looked normal, except for the fact that the usual breathing motions were missing. Rolling the sheets even further down, Blaise exposed the rest of his mother's torso. The long gashes along her lower arms were the only sign of self inflicted violence. Blood that had been gushing out of the wounds had dried already, caking all over her own body.

Blaise had taken out his wand and had closed up the ugly gashes marking his mother's body. With another flick of his wand he cleaned up the mess. He rummaged around the cold body and finally found what he was looking for. A delicate knife, with a nearly paper-thin blade lay next to her right hand. The sheath was lying on the nightstand. The knife was an heirloom his grandfather brought from Japan as a present for his daughter. When it was sheathed, it looked just like a black, polished piece of bamboo. He picked it up, hid it in his breast pocket and only then did he alarm the staff. He told his little brother that their mother had fallen asleep forever. His brother understood and started crying.

The funeral was beautiful. Noticeable was the fact that the funeral party consisted only of women and adolescents. All the men, or what was left of them, had been laid to rest only a few days beforehand.

Draco knew so much, because Blaise had confided in him after the funeral. They had known each other all their lives. And even if they didn't tell each other everything, a deep trust was still holding them together.

Just as they were about to leave for class, an owl swooped down low, dropping a roll of parchment onto Draco's head. Thankfully Blaise caught the missive before it could land on the dirty floor. He opened it and quickly skimmed it. With an amused expression Blaise handed Draco the letter. The blond boy took it and shot his classmate a shriveling gaze. The letter was written in an elaborate handwriting, which reminded Draco of a cheap Hallwart card.

"Dear Mr. Malfoy,

you may well be aware, that leaving a class before the official end is classified as breaking of the school rules. Your Advanced DaDA teacher was not able to pass you this information for obvious reasons. The staff has decided to punish you and two of your classmates: Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger. Due to personal problems between you and Mr. Potter, we will not put you together in one detention. But you will be serving detention with Ms. Granger. Maybe you will be able to sort out your problems, when forced to work together. Your detention will take place in the DaDA classroom at 6.00 pm.

Best wishes,

Hogwarts staff."

Draco groaned "This just can't be happening. I'm never gonna be able to finish my homework."

"And not to forget, we have double Potions now, so that mans, we will get an essay to write 'till next lesson." Blaise obviously thought that this was extremely amusing. The only thing keeping him from laughing out loud, was Draco's expression. It was more than clear, that Draco was ready to kill anybody or anything. Blaise knew that Daco was the best duelist at Hogwarts and didn't want to take him on, now or ever.

"Come on. Let's go!" snapped Draco, readying himself to face this totally unpromising day.


End file.
